Breaking Even
by Bree.Kiana
Summary: Klaine one-shot set in my "Courage-verse" for Emma. Kurt teaches Blaine how to ice-skate. Fluff with a touch of tension. "T" for language.


Seasonal Klaine for Emma

Blaine entered the large industrial-like building and looked around. It was loud and noisy, with several voices reverberating through the chilled air and bouncing every which way off of the large ice rink in the middle of the space. Blaine saw a lone pair of gloved hands wave frantically in the air. Smiling brightly, he made his way over the arms' owner, occasionally stopping to offer an apology to the mothers he had to step in front of.

"Thanks for meeting me here," Kurt smiled when the curly-haired man sat down beside him. "Were my directions sufficient?"

"I was a bit wary at first," Blaine admitted. "I was expecting to be hit over the head and tortured by the Russian mafia as soon as I entered."

Kurt laughed. "So was I, don't worry. The outside isn't much to look at, but the inside is homey once you break into the inner circle," Kurt responded, pointing toward the tight-knit group of gaggling women a few rows down and to the right. As if sensing the men's eyes, one of the mothers turned back and glared. "Or at least, that's what Rachel tells me," he added with a laugh. "At least the concession area behind us is heated."

Smiling, Blaine shifted his gaze from the brunette to the ten little girls on the ice. Blaine squinted, unable to distinguish Kurt's niece from the nearly identical dark brown buns. "Which one is she?"

"The one in that awful bubblegum pink tutu."

Blaine's smile grew as he listened to Kurt rattle on about how Rachel's horrible sense of fashion seemed to have passed on to Barbara, despite Kurt's best effort. "Seriously, I would burn everything if Babs wasn't so in love with all of it. My colleagues at the studio are at least nice enough not to point out the atrocity of her outfit choices when we're around."

"That bad, huh?" he asked as the little girl in question had her turn at trying a lutz.

Kurt sucked in a breath and held it until the girl landed soundly. "Sorry, that once has been giving her difficulty. What were we talking about?"

"A four-year old's since of fashion."

"Ah, yes! Absolutely horrible! She put custard and maroon together! I thought I was going blind!"

Blaine chuckled as he watched the strict-looking instructor praise the girls before releasing them. Once the ice was clear of students, the rink opened its doors and let the public skate.

"Ah, and here comes the terrible tyrant now. Excuse me while she tries to leech even more money out of me," Kurt excused himself to join the group of mothers.

Blaine watched as the four year old eagerly climbed the stairs to meet him. She was in such a hurry, that she tripped over her feet a few times, her skates swinging wildly in her hands, and eventually just threw herself into his arms.

"Blaine! You came!" she giggled into his chest.

"Of course I did, silly. I promised you I'd be here," Blaine replied, giving the small girl a reassuring squeeze.

"Did you see me jump?"

"I did! You looked really good," Blaine grinned.

Barbara beamed, clearly her mother's daughter. "Olivia said that I couldn't do it, but I did! And she fell on her butt."

"That's not a nice thing to say."

"Are you going to skate with me and Uncle Kurt?" she asked, her big brown eyes widening and her pale pink lips turning into a pout.

"We'll see. It depends on what your Uncle Kurt has planned for later."

"What are you blaming me for?"

Blaine grinned at Kurt, who returned looking a bit flustered.

"I want to skate with you and Blaine," Barbara pouted, both fists placed firmly on her hips.

Kurt rolled his eyes playfully. "I thought you wanted to go out for some hot chocolate?"

"Skate first. Drink later," she stomped.

Blaine took a step back as he shot Kurt a worried glance. _What four year old knew the concept of "later?"_

Kurt replied with a non-verbal "she's most likely gifted" before turning back to his niece. "I thought it would come to this," he grinned as he pulled out a worn pair of ice skates. "Let's go have fun. Blaine, you can borrow a pair at the counter, just tell Kaci to put it on my bill.

Blaine caught Kurt's arm and shook his head slightly.

The taller man took in his friend's dilated pupils rimmed completely in gold- creating the promise ring that once resided on his finger. He noticed Blaine's hitching breath. Kurt knew from countless nights and seemingly insignificant moments to know that Blaine was uncomfortable, if not a little distressed. "Babs, go ahead. Blaine needs some help getting his skates."

"Ok! I'm going to play with Ashley and Olivia!"

"What's wrong?" Kurt asked softly.

"I-I- this is so embarrassing…"

"What is?"

"I can't- I don't-" Blaine hung his head and mumbled.

"You know, even Babs knows it's not polite to mumble," Kurt remarked lightly.

Blaine let out a large sigh and met Kurt's eyes. "I don't know how to skate."

Kurt chortled before clamping a hand over his mouth. "are you serious? No, you can't be. You grew up in Ohio. We've skated. I remember."

"No, [i]_you_[/i] skated. I sat on the bench with Trent because I rolled my ankle on the slick ice outside the rink."

Kurt searched his memory. He remembered the Warbler bonding trip as if the past fifteen years hadn't happened. The blonde streak of Jeff's hair as it whizzed past him. Nick's ringing laughter. Flint, for such a tall and built boy, being surprisingly graceful on the ice. Wes clasping tightly onto David's shoulders, only for both of them to fall in a heap. But no Blaine, at least not on the ice. "Oh."

"Yea, oh," Blaine said, running the back of his neck nervously.

"So, you never tried after?"

Blaine laughed. "Yes, because there's so much ice in California!"

Smiling gingerly, Kurt held out his hand. "Well, it's your lucky day. I happen to be an excellent teacher."

"Oh really?" Blaine asked, a playful smirk stretching across his lips. "And what are your credentials?"

"I taught Finn how to skate." The lightness in Kurt's tone let Blaine know that Kurt had mostly dealt with the pain.

Blaine nodded his head in defeat. "Touché. I should warn you that I'm a terrible student."

Kurt looked back at the shorter man and winked. "Oh, I remember."

Once the way was clear, Kurt glided onto the ice with ease. Blaine followed on wobbly legs. "Take my hands. We're going to start out nice and slow. Think of it like regular skating, but you want to keep your weight in the center of the boot." Kurt pulled forward and began to skate backwards so that he could spot Blaine for the inevitable fall. He coaxed his former lover with the same soothing voice an encouraging parent gives their child.

He started out extremely shaky, but managed to improve once he got into a steady rhythm. Blaine also found that looking into Kurt's eyes helped him tremendously. "I-I think you can let go now."

"You sure?" Kurt asked, unwilling to admit that he didn't want to let go.

"Yea, just stay close."

Slowly, Kurt relaxed his grip until Blaine's hands slipped from his hands. He ached at the loss of contact almost instantly.

Blaine took three steps before Kurt instinctly threw out his arm and grabbed Blaine's elbow. Blaine laughed as he struggled to get his feet back underneath him. "Ok, so maybe I'm not ready," he grunted as his bum hit the cold ice.

"I cannot believe that you can't keep your balance. How many soccer and fencing trophies do you have?" Kurt teased.

"Ice is slippery! Now, help me up!"

"Ice is slippery," Kurt mimicked as he helped the curly-haired man to his feet. "Come on, Twinkle toes."

"Do you mind if we uh…if we hold hands?" Blaine asked from under his long eyelashes. "For balance, of course," he recovered quickly.

Kurt held out his right hand. "Here, take it." _I'd tell you to take my heart, too, but you never gave it back to me_

They skated for half an hour with only two more minor falls, talking about every light subject they could think of. There was a mutual unspoken agreement to not talk about past relationships, including their own. Barbara spent her time either skating beside her uncle or in the middle of the ice, showing off with her friends. "This is nice," Blaine mused. "I haven't had this kind of fun in a long time."

"It is a bit refreshing to skate with an adult that won't talk my ear off. I love Rachel, but there's only so many times I can hear about the latest shows and her auditions. And Babs is great, but a four year old does not offer much in the way of conversation."

Blaine nodded, letting Kurt's words soak in. "We should do this more. I'm going to declare it right now! Every Saturday after skating class, we skate!"

Kurt laughed at his enthusiasm. "I would shake on it, but I unfortunately have to work on Saturdays. This is a very rare weekend for me."

"Aren't you your own boss?"

"Technically, yes; however, I'm a slave to the magazines and fashion shows."

Blaine looked around quickly before replying. "They do say that fashion is a bitch."

Kurt stopped abruptly, causing Blaine to temporarily loose his balance. Neither noticed that their fingers became interlocked. "Do my ears deceive me or did Blaine Anderson just curse in public?"

"It's a colloquialism, so it doesn't count."

Kurt narrowed his eyes. "This isn't over," he said before skating off, towing Blaine behind. A rush of air and giggles blew past the two men, causing Blaine to completely lose his balance. He spun out and landed on one knee in front of Kurt, their fingers still laced together. Kurt sucked in a breath as memories flooded to reflect off of his retinas. He didn't realize Blaine was also lost in memories

"I'm sorry, Blaine!" Barbara's voice cut through the haze of the two men. "Blaine, are you going to marry Uncle Kurt? That's what happens when someone gets down on one knee, right?"

"You need a ring, Babs," Kurt replied as he helped Blaine stand up.

"I don't know about you, but there's a quarter machine full of rings," Blaine's voice was oddly low.

Kurt immediately dropped his hand and his gaze. "Don't," he breathed.

"Zamboni, Zamboni!" Barbara yelled, grabbing the men's hands and leading them off the ice.

Throughout the time that the Zamboni was clearing the ice, Blaine kept casting glances at Kurt. When Barbara finally went in search for her friends, he spoke up. "I'm sorry. We were all having such a great time and I ruined it. It's just-"

"I know, you don't have to explain," Kurt cut him off.

"We were so close before. Why can't we just go back?"

"Blaine, you know that's impossible. You said it yourself after we got together the first time. Once you're that close and intimate…there is no going back. Besides, we've both changed."

Blaine leaned over the table. "I didn't mean let's go back to friends. Kurt, I want to be your boyfriend again."

Kurt moved away and shook his head vigorously. "No, I can't lose you again- not when I just got you back."

Still looking at Kurt, Blaine fished a chain out from under his shirt. On it hung a simple gold band. "You never lost me in the first place." He reached over the table and grabbed Kurt's discarded hand. "We can do this, Kurt. Please? I've been kicking myself ever since I walked out the door, and I promised myself that if I ever got the chance, I would make everything right again. Please."

"We're both so busy-"

"I have the weekends off and I only work until two on Fridays. I don't mind vegging on the couch and watching sappy movies…or reading to each other. Please, Kurt, just give me one last chance. One date is all I'm asking for.

Kurt was overwhelmed and Barbara was making her way back over to them. "Fine. One date. I'll make myself free this Friday night. Pick me up promptly at 7 o'clock and take me somewhere where jeans and t-shirts are not permitted."

Blaine smiled. "I'll see you Friday at 7."

"See you then," Kurt replied before grabbing Barbara's hand and walking out of the ice rink.


End file.
